Introduction and Features

Introduction

SilverStone Technology Co. has been a pioneer in promoting both fan-less and Small Form Factor power supplies for PC enthusiasts. Now they have combined these two features in the new Nightjar Series 450W silent power supply. The NJ450-SXL power supply is fan-less and comes housed in an extended length SFX chassis.

Most fan-less PC power supplies incorporate an open design to allow airflow in through all sides but the NJ450-SXL is unique in that it uses a closed chassis with thick extruded aluminum sides to dissipate waste heat. The target audience is people who want a silent power supply (no fan noise and any potential high frequency coil whine or other electrical noises are sealed off) in small enclosure. This design could also be of interest to someone who needs a SFX-L power supply for use in a dirty-dusty environment that might quickly choke a standard fan-cooled unit.

NJ450-SXL

(NJ = Nightjar Series, 450 = 450W, SXL = SFX-L Form Factor)

(Courtesy of SilverStone)

As you might expect, the SilverStone NJ450-SXL power supply features high efficiency (80 Plus Platinum certified) and comes with all modular flat ribbon-style cables.

The EATX case can hold a CPU cooler of up to 185mm in height and offers a wide variety of cooling options. Depending on how you configure the case, the front can handle up to three 120mm or two 140mm fans or a radiator of up to 280mm. The top can be configured to hold up to three 120mm or 140mm fans, or a 420mm radiator if your motherboard doesn't impinge on it. The rear can fit a single 120mm fan or radiator, or a single 140mm fan while the bottom can support a pair of 120mm or 140mm fans or a 280mm rad.

You can also chose between a solid metal side panel or a tempered glass one as well as drive bracket upgrade kits which will add support for an additional pair of HDDs or SSDs depending on which you order.

The basic model will set you back $140 or $160 with tempered glass, if you change your mind later on a glass side panel will cost you $30. The drive brackets are $10 regardless of the type of drive they will be holding and you can pick it up now.

Sweden, September 12, 2018 – Fractal Design proudly announces the expansion of the Define R6 line with new USB C versions and a number of accessories including seamless tempered glass side panels and drive bracket dual packs, now available separately to even further extend the capabilities of the Define R6.

Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C
Designed from the ground up, the Define R6 goes beyond iteration with a profound stride of innovation – the latest and largest step in the legacy of the world-renowned Define Series.

Expanding on the timeless, elegant form and silent modular function that brought so much success to its predecessors, the Define R6 offers the most demanding hardware enthusiast a solid foundation and flexible framework with limitless potential.

Define R6 Tempered Glass Side Panel
Add a layer of refinement to your Define R6 with an upgrade to tempered glass.

The Fractal Design TG panel upgrade kit lets you equip one or both sides of your Define R6 with a seamless, scratch-resistant tempered glass panel for a sleek, super-premium look.

HDD Drive Tray and SSD Bracket Kit
Increase the storage capacity of your Fractal Design case with a drive bracket upgrade kit. Each kit includes everything you need to add two additional drive mounts to cases with Fractal Design Type-A drive brackets and available mounting positions.

You have a bit of choice with the EQUILANCE, it can be configured for silent running or you can remove some of the features which reduce noise to increase cooling. For instance the top of the case features a magnetically attached foam dampener which could be removed to allow you to install three 120mm or two 140mm fan or up to a 360mm radiator. The front offers a similar choice, with space for three 120mm fans or up to a 360mm radiator, though the latter will require removal of the PSU shroud. The side panel is made of 4mm thick tempered glass mounted with four rubber-surrounded screws to ensure no noise escapes from there.

"The Enermax EQUILENCE comes with a lot of promises, mostly that it is silent. In our experiences however, "silent" cases are usually hotter on your hardware. Enermax has looked to figure that out while giving us an unassuming looking case that has tons of cooling options and features built into a very workable form factor."

The Corsair Crystal 280X RGB is indeed large enough to fit an R9 280X, and AMD isn't really using that name anymore so why not just poach it? As with the Air 240, the case has two compartments, one for your motherboard and add in cards, with a separate one behind to hold your PSU as well as fans or even a radiator. RGB addicts will love the pair of LL120 RGB fans and Lighting Node Pro controller. Take a peek at this new case over at TechPowerUp.

"The Corsair Crystal 280X RGB takes the idea behind the Air 240, and the classy looks and material mix of the Crystal family, and marries them in an even more compact, powerful, and beautiful enclosure that includes not only better liquid-cooling compatibility but also features Corsair's retail-grade LL120 RGB fans and the Lightning Pro Node."

Introduction and Case Exterior

It has been almost three years since we reviewed the original Silent Base 600 enclosure, and today we have the brand new Silent Base 601 from be quiet! in for review. Launching this week, the latest case from the German manufacturer combines a noise-reducing interior with a no-frills exterior. Gone are its predecessor's optical drive bays and hinged front panel door, allowing for a wide-open internal layout, and overall this is a thoroughly modern enclosure design.

The Silent Base 601 enclosure also marks this reviewer's first experience with a be quiet! product (Lee handled the Silent Base 600 review), so I came into the this with zero expectations - and was honestly pretty surprised by the case overall. My findings (and many photos) are documented in this review, so let's get started!

Introduction and Features

Introduction

Earlier this year we looked at the BitFenix Whisper M 850W power supply and today we are taking a detailed look at the BitFenix Formula Gold 750W unit. With a lower price point the Formula Gold Series is targeted towards mainstream consumers. The most obvious difference between these two units is the Formula God Series has all fixed cables while the Whisper M Series comes with modular cables. The Formula Gold power supplies use a 120mm cooling fan that spins all the time while the Whisper M units incorporate a 135mm fan with semi-fanless operation. And last but not least is a difference in warranty period. The Formula Gold Series are backed with a 5-year warranty while the Whisper M units come with a 7-year warranty.

Formed in 2014 and based in New Taipei, Taiwan, BitFenix started their PC hardware business with a focus on power supplies, cases, lighting accessories, and LED fans targeted towards enthusiasts, gamers and modders. They currently have four different power supply lines: the Formula Gold, BitFenix BPA, Whisper M, and the Fury. The Formula Gold series includes four models: 450W, 550W, 650W and 750W.

The BitFenix Formula Gold Series power supplies are certified to comply with the 80 Plus Gold standards for high efficiency and feature Japanese made capacitors. All of the Formula Gold power supplies use a multi-rail delivery system with four dedicated +12V outputs: MB-PH, CPU, VGA1, and VGA2.

The Cooler Master ML360R RGB all in one cooler features a radiator with three 120mm fans. Installation of the cooler was easy for [H]ard|OCP but there is an extra step as you have to connect the 5-way ARGB splitter for those Frag Harder Disco Lights ... or not. From the acoustic results this is obviously a performance cooler; you will get very good temperatures under load but you will hear it in operation. If you are looking to tilt the balance of your cooling systems in favour of cooler operation you should check this review out.

"If it is Frag Harder Disco Lights you want, then Cooler Master ML360R RGB All-In-One CPU liquid cooler has that in spades. RGB is nice and all, but how does this AIO do where the rubber meets the road? We strap the ML360R RGB to our highly over-volted and overclocked Ryzen 7 processor and find out."

The RMx naming separates this PSU from the RMi lineup which includes Corsair's Link which reduces the price somewhat and the 850W model was good enough to receive a Gold Award from Lee. [H]ard|OCP tested out the 750W member of this family, enough power for many builds, to see if it matched the quality of its big brother. Their tests showed a solid PSU that met all the requirements for a pass and a Silver; though it does have a small problem. Last years Corsair TX750M is every bit as good and at a lower price with only one possible drawback, the ATX power connector is not modular. This will not matter as all motherboards like to have their power in order to POST. Check out the full review here.

"Corsair has been bumping up its street cred lately with PSU designs that are up to HardOCP standards. Today we have its latest 2018 version of the RM series PSU rated at 750 watts. It features Gold efficiency, a fully modular design, has a 10 year warranty, and carries with it a fully modular design, all for the price of $110."

Introduction and Features

Introduction

NZXT recently introduced the E Series line of digital power supplies which is being offered in three sizes: 500W, 650W and 850W. The E Series power supplies are all modular, support 80 Plus Gold efficiency certification, and come backed by a 10-year warranty. We will be taking a detailed look at the NZXT E850 PSU in this review.

One of the more unique features offered by the NZXT E Series digital power supplies is support for NZXT’s CAM desktop monitoring and control software. This allows the end user to monitor various power supply parameters (voltages, power, temperature, etc., by rail) and provides control over current limit set points and fan speed profiles. An onboard DSP digital interface connects the E Series power supply to the PC via a USB link to the motherboard.

NZXT partnered with Seasonic as the OEM for the E Series; one of the most respected manufacturers in the industry. So as you might expect the NZXT E Series power supplies incorporate high-quality components like all Japanese made electrolytic capacitors 105°C and a 120mm FDB (Fluid Dynamic Bearing Fan).

The E Series power supplies are currently entering retail channels and should be available from your favorite online retailer by the end of July 2018. The MSRPs for the three E Series power supplies are:

A couple of weeks ago, GamersNexus published a video and article that benchmarked CPU performance across various thermal paste patterns. It’s well established that the best method of applying the compound is to spread it out as thin as possible, so it fills the gaps with something better than air but doesn’t insulate the parts that would naturally make perfect contact. That takes effort, though, and it’s not clear how much that buys you for modern CPUs with integrated heat-spreaders (IHS).

If you’re attaching a heatsink to a GPU or other bare die ASIC? Different story. Their tests are focused on CPUs with heat spreaders.

Long story short? Not so much difference. The “pea sized” method had a little issue because it didn’t fully cover the IHS, but they went on with the tests because it’s supposed to reflect real-world situations, and that was a real-world type of error. Even still, that corresponded to less than a degree Celsius under load (as measured on an Intel Core i7-8086k). The article mentions something about delidding the CPU, although the photos clearly have an IHS (and that’s the point of the test in the first place) so I’m guessing they only took the IHS off temporarily and replaced it.

It’s interesting how close they ended up. I would have thought that 30 minutes of full load would show at least a few degrees of variance, but apparently not, even with a little patch of uncovered space.